ABSTRACT
“There is none so discerning and wise as you,” Pharaoh says of Joseph. The two men appear to be well matched; both expect to become better off as a result of their meeting. The wisdom referred to is administrative. After the seven years of abundance passed and the seven years of famine began, in accord with Joseph’s interpretation of Pharaoh’s dreams, there was famine everywhere in the known world. As Egyptians became hungrier, they appealed to Joseph as the person Pharaoh had designated to distribute food. Bit by bit, Joseph took all the resources of the Egyptian population: first their money, then their livestock, and then their land. In desperation, they offered to become “servants to Pharaoh” if only his agent, Joseph, would provide them with seed. Had Pharaoh done this by himself, people might not think anything of it; after all, his whims were law and he might deem the subjection of his people insufficient.
